


Pranks Instead of Peas

by larosesombre, Scarlett_Lucian



Category: Fairy Tales & Related Fandoms, Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Prinsessen paa Ærten | The Princess and the Pea - Hans Christian Andersen
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Romance, Fairy Tale Retellings, First Kiss, Gryffindor Common Room, M/M, Mutual Pining, Romantic Fluff, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-07
Updated: 2020-09-07
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:01:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26336095
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/larosesombre/pseuds/larosesombre, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scarlett_Lucian/pseuds/Scarlett_Lucian
Summary: When the Slytherin dormitories are closed for repairs, Draco Malfoy is forced to room for one night in the sixth year Gryffindor boys' dorm with Harry Potter and all of his suspicious friends. But when Ron and Dean decide to put a prank jinx on Draco's bed to test him, the dorm wakes up the next morning to an unexpected situation.Very loosely based on the Han Christian Andersen fairy tale "The Princess and the Pea"
Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter
Comments: 10
Kudos: 238





	Pranks Instead of Peas

**Author's Note:**

> So this fic was the product of my and larosesombre's boredom!   
> We randomly selected the prompt "Retell a fairy tale, but set in the present day in your fandom".  
> We decided that our system of writing would be to each begin a story inspired by the prompt, write for ten minutes, and then swap stories and write for another ten minutes building onto the other's and so on, which is a writing exercise style that we've done for years for fun, but this is the first time that we've ever posted anything written that way, so hopefully it still makes sense! I am the regular type and larosesombre is the bold.   
> We're still working on the story idea that larosesombre came up with, but we might post that one too at some point.   
> I chose the fairy tale "The Princess and the Pea", and it ended up being a very vague retelling, but hopefully you can still recognize the elements from the original story!   
> Enjoy!

Draco stared at Professor Snape. 

“Sorry, WHAT happened to the Slytherin dorms?”

Snape let out a long-suffering sigh. “It appears that the magical bonds strengthening the window out to the lake have weakened and water has been seeping through. It’s going to take a day or two to repair them.”

The rest of the Slytherins gathered outside the entrance to their dormitory grumbled in complaint. They had always known nothing good would come of having only a pane of glass between them and the giant squid’s home. 

“But where are we going to stay?” Pansy demanded shrilly, gripping Draco’s arm tightly in panic. 

He winced, trying to pry his friend’s hand off, but she only clenched harder. 

“I’m afraid that you shall have to share with the other houses,” Snape said sympathetically, looking as though he truly did feel sorry for them. “There is a list by dormitory with your new assigned sleeping spots tacked up outside the Great Hall. Your hosts have already been warned by their heads of house to be welcoming, however if you still have any trouble, come directly to me and I shall sort them out.” 

**Snape was forced to step aside as a mob of Slytherins pushed their way past him, everyone hurrying to get to the list. Draco followed at a measured pace as they started towards the staircase, not particularly interested in making a fool of himself. He was as anxious as the rest to learn what house he’d be rooming with, but he could still walk at a dignified speed. As a result he reached the list after everyone else and was forced to elbow his way through the crowd of students who had already gathered.**

**Draco made his way straight for the Ravenclaw list. He could see a mix of disgruntled Ravenclaws and Slytherins gathered around it already, and pushed several aside to get a clear view of the list of names. It was done alphabetically. He started around the middle and scanned the M section, hoping that he’d be there. If he had to be cast out of his own dorm, he might as well end up with a house of tolerable intelligence.**

**It wasn’t until he reached P, Parkinson, that he realised he wasn’t on the list. He turned to search for the Hufflepuff list next, and elbowing his way back out of the crowd of students, found himself not more than a foot away from Harry Potter, who was listening to an irate Weasley complain about opening up the dorms.**

**“I’ll tell you what, Harry, I’ll bet this was deliberate!” Weasley was yelling. “Malfoy probably kicked the window in himself so that he could infiltrate the Gryffindor dorms!”**

Stomach sinking, Draco finally looked at the Gryffindor list. Sure enough, there was his name, the letters seeming to taunt him. 

Weasley was glaring at him furiously, already looking as though he had planned at least five different ways to murder Draco.

Draco stared coolly back. “Oh, for Merlin’s sake, Weasley, it’s one bloody night!”

“Yeah, Ron,” Potter said soothingly, holding back his friend, who had just reached for his wand. “It’s just one night. Besides, you know what McGonagall will say if you attack him. She’ll probably deduct points from her own house.” 

Weasley continued to frown. Draco held his breath, wondering if he should reach for his own wand.

“Fine,” Weasley spat at last. “But I’m warning you, Harry. One wrong move and I don’t care how many points McGonagall takes!” 

Draco smirked. “If you lay a single hex on me, you’ll have far more to worry about than just losing a few house points. Professor Snape said that he won’t stand for any nonsense and I do rather think that he might consider cursing another student to be nonsense.”

Enjoying how pale Weasley grew under his freckles, Draco turned on his heel and walked away, leaving the threat hanging in the air.

***

When Harry walked into his dorm, he was surprised to see another bed had squeezed itself in to the right of his, made up in red and gold sheets just like all the others, as though it had been there since the beginning. 

Ron followed him, still muttering about Malfoy. “I swear, if he so much as turns up his nose at one thing!”

“Ron, c’mon! You’re worrying too much!” Harry pleaded, ignoring the strange burble of excitement that had appeared in his stomach at the thought of Malfoy sleeping so close to him. Perfect hair spread out against his pillow. He probably looked like an angel. 

**“You’re not worrying enough.” Ron growled.**

**“Nobody is worrying enough, if you ask me.” Dean said, entering the room and leaning on the doorframe. He counted the number of beds. “Who’ve we got in here, Harry?”**

**“Malfoy.” Ron spat, before Harry could answer. “I never thought the day would come when we’d have to share a dorm with Draco bloody Malfoy, but the world plays cruel tricks on us all.”**

**“Ron, you’re being dramatic.” Harry said. He took a seat on his own bed, sitting close to the new bed almost protectively. “I doubt Malfoy is thrilled by this turn of events either.”**

Ron snorted dismissively, falling back on his own bed. 

“Hey, what about we do a little test, to, you know, keep him in line?” Dean said, grinning as he wandered across the room towards the new bed. 

“What do you mean?” Ron asked interestedly, sitting up. 

“Well, the professors said we can’t directly cast spells on them, but what if we did something to the bed?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Harry said quickly, pulse racing nervously. 

Ron ignored him. “What do you have in mind?”

“It can’t be too obvious or he’ll know we did something,” Dean reasoned, getting out his wand and hovering it over the mattress. “But there’s this spell that Fred and George used to do that would make your mattress feel unforgivably lumpy every time you just drifted off to sleep. It would be so uncomfortable that you would wake up as soon as you fell asleep, so you’d be awake all night!”

“That would show the git!” Ron crowed eagerly. “And if he so much as says a word, we can go to McGonagall and say he’s being ungrateful and bothering us!” 

“Serve the pompous pureblood right,” Dean said with satisfaction. “Keep him in line while he’s slumming it with us. If he says nothing, then he’s at least got a smidge of decency in him.”

“Mates, don’t this,” Harry said. “It’s not his fault that his dormitory is being repaired and he has to bunk with us.”

“Who knows?” Ron said darkly. “I wouldn’t put it past him to do it on purpose just so he could get to you. Honestly, Harry, it’s for your own protection! If he’s being poked and prodded, then he’ll be too preoccupied to come after you!” 

Dean nodded solemnly, waving his wand over the bedspread and muttering something just as the sound of sharp footsteps echoed outside the door. 

**Dean drew back from the bed at the exact moment that Malfoy entered. He looked around the room suspiciously, eyeing Dean, who had a guilty look on his face. “Plotting something, are we?” He sneered. “I’ll thank you not to do it over my bed.”**

**“I was just leaving.” Dean said. “C’mon Ron, Harry, we’ve got some last-minute homework to do before we turn in.”**

**“You go.” Harry said. “I want to stay and help Malfoy settle in.” He winked at them, hoping they’d assume it meant something other than a genuine desire to want to stay behind to help. They bought it, whatever it was, and winked back before leaving the room.**

**“How charitable of you, Potter.” Malfoy drawled, setting a pair of immaculately folded silk pajamas on the pillow and turning down the sheet. “But don’t let me keep you. I’d hate to be the cause of your plummeting grades.”**

**“Can I help you unpack?” Harry asked, ignoring the slight. “Or give you a tour? It can be drafty. I remember my first night in the Gryffindor dorms--”**

**“I doubt it’s as drafty as the Slytherin ones.” Malfoy said, cutting him off. “I can manage, thanks.”**

**Harry nodded, and with one last look at the sight of Draco standing mere feet away from Harry’s bed, he left the room in search of Dean and Ron. He didn’t have to look very far. They were lurking just outside.**

**“Well?” Ron asked. “What did you do?”  
Harry wasn’t going to tell the truth. He doubted his friends would buy it if he did. “I told him he’d better be on his best behaviour tonight.” Harry lied. **

***

A half hour later, all the boys were in their pajamas and getting into bed. 

Draco felt extremely odd, being privy to such a jovial scene. The Gryffindors laughed and chatted as they slipped under their covers, as though he wasn’t even there. Only Potter made something of an effort to talk to him, directing him to the bathroom where he could get changed and brush his teeth. At least, that’s what Draco thought he was saying, as at the time he had been rather distracted by the sight of Potter in pajama pants and an oversized cotton t-shirt. He was disgusted by the sloppiness, is what he told himself, pushing back any thoughts of how comfortable it would feel to lean his head against Potter’s shoulder. 

Now dressed in his own pajamas, he gingerly got under the covers of the bed that had appeared for him. Although why anyone would want to sleep on sheets the colour of blood was beyond him. It seemed terribly violent. 

Gradually, everyone quieted down, the room filled with only the soft sounds of breathing and slight snores from Longbottom. 

Draco shifted onto his side, tucking an arm underneath the cool pillow, and yawning, the muted waves of sleep almost upon him. To his surprise, he found himself staring into Potter’s bright green eyes. The other boy blushed, glancing away for a moment. 

Draco did nothing, simply staring back, the eye connection oddly comforting. 

**It was all too short. Potter’s eyes began to droop, and long before Draco even felt tired enough to sleep, Potter’s eyes were shut and he was snoring. It was an endearing, soft little snore. Draco let himself stare at sleeping Potter for a moment longer, then he shifted his weight in the bed, rolling onto his back. The mattress was uncomfortable on his side, digging into his hip in a way the Slytherin mattresses never did.**

**It was worse on his back. Whoever had slept in this bad last had left lumps and broken springs as a calling card. Draco tossed and turned a bit more, but was so thoroughly uncomfortable that he considered getting up out of the bed to sleep on the floor.**

**Actually, getting out of the bed wasn’t a bad idea. But Draco had no intention of sleeping on the cold stones. He rolled onto his side again, wincing when a spring stabbed him in the side through the quilted mattress cover, and stared at Potter again. It was a big bed. There was room beside Potter for another person. It might be a little cramped, but at this point, tired as he was, Draco didn’t mind cramped. It was better than being bruised and bloodied after a night on his own torture chamber of a mattress.**

**Draco rolled stealthily out of his own bed, and padded over to Potter’s, crossing the short distance and lifting Potter’s duvet just enough to slide in. Potter was warm and when Draco cuddled up hesitantly, he leaned back into him, smiling in his sleep. The steady snore was uninterrupted, and Draco relaxed on a mattress that wasn’t trying to kill him.**

**He’d just have to wake up before the Gryffindors so that he could extricate himself from this situation without embarrassment.**

***

Harry’s eyes slowly fluttered open. The sun was only just starting to creep over the horizon and the room was still mostly dark. Luxuriating in the realization that he still had a few hours of sleep, Harry turned over, curling into the warmth of his bed. 

Only his bed didn’t usually respond to this action by elbowing him in the face. 

Harry sat upright, biting back a curse at the pain crawling across his ribs, sure to leave a bruise in its wake. He fumbled for his glasses.

“Malfoy?” He exclaimed, unable to believe his eyes. But sure enough, there was the Slytherin, scowling up at him, usually immaculate hair tossled from sleep and sticking straight up from his head with the static from the pillow. Harry’s pillow! 

“Keep it down, Potter!” Malfoy hissed, glancing at the other beds furtively to check that their occupants were still asleep. 

“What are you doing?” Harry whispered furiously. He was caught between wanting to hex Malfoy within an inch of his life and lie back down and curl up against his shoulder. It all made him feel terribly dizzy. 

Malfoy hesitated, gaze flashing briefly towards the bed that had been conjured for him. “Nothing,” he finally said, sitting up and moving to slide out from underneath the covers. “Sorry to disturb you, Potter.”

**Harry glanced at Malfoy’s bed, feeling horribly guilty as he watched Malfoy crawl back into it over the jumble of duvet and sheets. “Wait.”**

**Malfoy paused, turning to face Harry again. “What?”**

**“Don’t-- you don’t have to leave. Unless you want to, of course. I’m not telling you to stay. Just-- maybe if you were more comfortable here.” Harry stammered before finally finishing with: “That’s a rotten bed. The springs are all broken.” He chose to withhold the fact that Dean had enchanted them to be that way.**

**“Oh.” Was all Malfoy managed in response.**

**Harry decided that shutting up would be a wiser thing to do that blabbering on. He waited for Malfoy to say something else. Anything that could resolve this, that could salvage whatever this moment was.**

**“People will talk.” Malfoy whispered after a long silence.**

**That’s what Malfoy was worried about? Harry could have laughed out loud at that, after the moment of anxiety he had felt waiting for Malfoy’s response. Harry grabbed his pillow and duvet and got out of his bed. “Come with me then. Bring your own pillow.”**

**Malfoy looked confused, but he grabbed the pillow and duvet off of his own bed and followed Harry out of the dorm into the common room. The big couch by the fire was empty at this early hour, and Harry led him over to it.**

Propping his pillow against one arm of the couch, Harry curled up on one side, gesturing for Malfoy to do the same. 

Malfoy hesitated, staring down at Harry with something unreadable in his stormy eyes, before following suit. 

“I’ll set a Tempus so we can get back upstairs before the others wake up,” Harry assured him.

They both settled in against the cushions, their breath slowing as they gradually relaxed. Their feet tangled automatically, pressing against each other for warmth. And perhaps just for the soothing contact that came with knowing that someone else was there. 

Harry breathed in the startling comforting spicy scent of Malfoy’s cologne and drifted back off to sleep. 

***

The dull sound of a Tempus charm rang in Draco’s ears and he rolled over, intending to shove his pillow over his head, but instead suddenly falling. Tangled in his duvet, pillow slipping down on top of him, Draco found himself on the cold, hard floor of the Gryffindor Common room, looking up at the couch where Potter was still sound asleep, even through the piercing alarm. 

The fire had burned out to glowing coals and the morning air was cold against Draco’s skin. Wrapping his duvet around his shoulders, and sparing one last glance down at Potter, whose face was so peacefully handsome in sleep, Draco made his way back up to the dormitory. 

**As the dorm filled with morning light and the other sleepers in the room began to stir, Draco climbed back into his own horrible bed. When Ron and Dean awoke, they found him ‘waking up’, stretching and yawning and looking refreshed.**

*******

**“Wake up, Mate!” Ron jabbed Harry in the shoulder repeatedly with his wand. “What are you doing out here?”**

**“Sod off.” Harry groaned, slapping Ron’s hand away. “Stop doing that. You’re going to jinx me by accident.”**

**“We were going to ask you whether you heard any complaints from Malfoy last night.” Dean said, popping up over Ron’s shoulder. “But he was sleeping in his bed, looking totally well rested and you’re out here sleeping on the couch. Did I spell the wrong bed?”**

**“No, I was just cold.” Harry lied. “The fireplace is nice.”**

**“Bloody hell, Harry. You could have cast a warming spell. Or you could take my blanket next time instead of sleeping out here!” Ron said, shaking his head at Harry in disbelief.**

**“I’ll remember that for next time.” Harry said. He was beginning to feel annoyed at Malfoy for abandoning him out there in the common room. The Tempus charm had sputtered out, and Harry, having slept through its earlier attempts, was left to explain away a somewhat awkward situation.**

**“Since you slept out here, I take it you didn’t hear anything from Malfoy?” Dean asked.**

**“Not a thing.” Harry lied. He didn’t really have many options other than lying. Telling the truth about the night’s events would probably cause a riot. “As far as I know, he slept through the night unbothered.”**

“Hmph,” Ron said, dissatisfied. 

“Guess we have to give him props for that,” Dean said reluctantly. 

“Yes, do, and let’s put this whole thing behind us!” Harry said enthusiastically, gathering up his bedding and stumbling back up the stairs. 

Inside the dorm, Malfoy was already dressed in his uniform, and knotting his tie with expert hands. Harry felt an odd pang seeing Malfoy’s hair tamed from its adorable bedhead and coiffed back as properly as always. 

The other boy avoided his gaze, a faint pink tinging his cheeks as he focused on pulling on his robes. 

Disappointment clouding his insides, Harry dumped his blanket and pillow unceremoniously onto his bed and gathered up his own uniform to get changed. Malfoy didn’t say a word to him as he hunted through his trunk for the various pieces.

So this was how it was going to be. Back to cool steady enmity like last night never happened. Like they hadn’t slept curled up against each other for most of the night. Like their sleepy civility had never existed. 

**Neville was just starting to wake up, later than everyone else but Seamus as usual. He yawned and sat up in bed, staring at Harry and Malfoy and then at Ron and Dean in the doorway. “I had the strangest dream last night.” He muttered sleepily, pausing to wait for someone to urge him onwards. After a moment of silence without encouragement he continued anyway. “I had a dream that Malfoy was in Harry’s bed last night.”**

**Malfoy made a strangled sound that would have left Harry concerned if he wasn’t more concerned with preventing himself from flying across the room to throttle Neville.**

**“What?” Ron squeaked from the doorway. “Neville, why would you…?”**

**“It was just a dream.” Neville said, confused. “Why does everyone look so upset?”**

**Malfoy had turned an alarming shade of pink at this point. Harry looked at him in concern, then back at the door where Dean and Ron stood staring at Harry in horror.**

**“Harry’s bed is more comfortable.” Dean whispered so that Harry had to lean in to hear him.**

**“But small.” Ron added desperately, looking as if he might collapse in the doorway.**

**Harry risked another look at Malfoy who was now slightly purple. Harry wasn’t sure if he was breathing properly, Neville’s “dream” seemed to have knocked the air right out of him.**

Harry sucked in a breath, summoning his Gryffindor courage. “It’s true.”

“What?” Ron spluttered, closely following Malfoy as his face reddened. 

Dean looked thoroughly flummoxed, while Neville glanced confusedly between everyone, as though he weren’t entirely sure that he wasn’t still dreaming. Seamus slept on, unbothered by the commotion.

As for Malfoy, he was gaping at Harry, hands still clutching at his tie, half way through knotting it. 

“And I don’t want to ignore it,” Harry continued, speaking directly to Malfoy now. “And I don’t think that you do either, really.”

He stepped towards him, feeling impossibly underdressed in his pajamas next to the other boy’s full uniform. 

“I want to wake up beside you again and curl up with you on couches--”

“Couch!” Ron gasped, eyes widening with the realization. 

Ignoring his best friend’s dramatics, Harry reached out his hands tentatively.“I want to eat breakfast with you and whisper jokes in your ear that probably aren’t really that funny, but that make you laugh anyway because I said them.”

Malfoy’s mouth almost curled up in a smile at the last part and he lowered his hands to interlace with Harry’s, palms and fingers slotting perfectly together with a warm buzz that settled in Harry’s veins. 

“And I really, really want to kiss you,” Harry whispered, watching him hopefully. 

Malfoy opened his mouth, looking as though he had a thousand words he wanted to toss in Harry’s face, but changed his mind. “Oh, screw that,” he muttered, and tugged Harry against him into a first kiss that was worth all the jinxed beds in the world. 

And they all lived happily ever after, 

The end.

**Author's Note:**

> So there you go! Some short, sweet, fairy tale based fluff! I quite enjoyed working on something other than 'Synonyms for Pretend' and we hope you all enjoyed it! If you did, we'd really appreciate any comments and/or kudos! And please check out our other works and subscribe for future content! <3


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